Sprint purchase of T-Mobile gets murky after DoJ meeting

The first time we heard that Sprint was considering a purchase of T-Mobile was in December 2013. At the time, the acquisition was tipped to possibly happen in the first half of 2014. As with any major acquisition, the deal would be subject to closing conditions and regulatory approval.

A meeting between the US Department of Justice and Sprint officials was recently held and the result of that meeting was that doubts placed on the future merger between the two wireless carriers. Reports indicate that Masayoshi Son and Dan Hesse met with DoJ officials about the deal.

People that claim to know what is going on in the deal claim that the antitrust regulators fear that the consolidation would result in a less competitive market in the US. That means that the deal could face regulatory hurdles that may ultimately kill it.

The DoJ had previously said that four wireless carriers gave competition to the market that was important for the consumer suggesting it wanted to see four carriers remain. The deal will only be approved by the DoJ if it favors consumers in the US.